Jeanne Assam, the heroine of the New Life Church shooting in Colorado Springs, would likely have been unable to carry the Beretta that she stopped the shooting with if she had been a licensed security guard.

An AP article published on 12 December noted that licensed security guards in Colorado Springs are restricted to the use of revolvers.

As Jeanne Assam was a volunteer parishioner who was performing security guard duties because the church did not want to hire mercenaries, she was almost certainly not affected by the regulations, which only apply to government regulated security guards.

Fortunately, her lack of official status with the state and city allowed her to carry a firearm with sufficient firepower to accomplish the necessary task.

The facts in the article are from various news sources on the web, and can be checked out pretty easily. Much of the MSM is referring to Jeanne as a "security guard", inferring that she was licensed by the state.

It is interesting to note that if she had been licensed by the state, she would have been prevented from using the Beretta that she used to stop the crime.

What morons!!!!! The Beretta was not and is not a revolver. Doesn't anyone check to make sure what they claim is true anymore????? I think this crap cam right off the desk of Sara Brady!!!!!!

Huh? What they're saying is that if she HAD BEEN A LICENSED SECURITY GUARD, she wouldn't have been allowed to use her Beretta, but as a private citizen with a CCW permit, she wasn't limited to using a revolver, which is what the licensed security guards are required to use.

The point of the article is that Jeanne Assam was not a "licensed security guard". As such, it was fine for her to have her Beretta semi-auto pistol to perform the "security" task. Had she been state licensed as a security guard, she would have been limited to a revolver.

I agree with the previous poster with respect to an S&W 686+ with 7 rounds. Seven rounds of .357 magnum from a 686+ would likely have been equally effective. We don't know enough from the article to say whether the Beretta was 9mm or 40 S&W. Apparently 10 rounds did the job.

I still think the coroner lied in the public statement that shooter died from a self-inflicted shotgun wound after Assam hit him with 10 rounds from her Beretta. The shooter didn't have a shotgun. The weapons identified were are AR-15 rifle and two semi-auto handguns.

Who needs a “licensed security” guard?
Last summer we attended a rather large wedding in our town. The bride was from a well known family so there were a few hundred souls present - enough to pack the church.

As I sat myself towards the back, I looked around and counted a minimum of 14 people (all positioned near the back and/or doors) I knew were all carrying, myself included. Concealed by my sportcoat was a Glock 31 plus two spare mags. That’s 46 rounds of 357 Sig, and I was just one person. Some folks I know carry two guns. We are all seasoned competitors.
Heaven help anyone who started trouble.

These do-gooder jackasses need to quit splitting hairs and get off the backs of people who will stand up to evil.

Of course, a single hit from anything is better than 30 misses. However is there any information about how many times the murderer was hit? If trying to keep him pinned down, the more the merrier, when it comes to shots fired. Though the use of "covering fire" isn't a good doctrine to be using in a civilian area.

But I agree, a more potent round would have been better. But if that's the round she's most comfortable with then that's what she should be using. The Bererra is a relatively large and heavy handgun for a 9mm, making it relatively easy to shoot (though some women and men with smaller hands dislike the wide double stack mag well grip).

“It is interesting to note that if she had been licensed by the state, she would have been prevented from using the Beretta that she used to stop the crime.”

“Don’t know about any state license requirements, but the rule about a wheel gun as opposed to a semi auto is a city ordnance. So the link says.”

Yes, it is a city ordnance. I believe it applies to licensed security guards. Perhaps security guards are licensed by the city instead of the state. I would love to have fellow freepers investigate this aspect.

It has not been established that the shooter was wearing body armor. I researched all the news stories I could find around the time of the shooting. I found no confirmation of that speculation. It's pretty easy to deliver a full magazine of 9mm into a target before the target hits the floor. Body armor will stop most handgun calibers (9mm, 40 S&W, 45Auto) due to the large cross sectional area of the bullet. The .22 caliber .223 (AR-15) or 5.7x28 have a smaller cross sectional area and sufficient velocity to penetrate body armor. A knife will slice with body armor with ease.

I have a beretta 92 FS. It’s a very fine weapon. Shoots very straight. But I sure wouldn’t want to carry one on me 24-7. I’m more impressed this smallish female lugs the thing around all the time than I am that she actually shot and hit a bad guy with it.

For carry, I need something much smaller. Kahr, walther, keltec, seacamp, etc. Otherwise, I just leave it home.

The title uses “may,” which is basically the subjunctive in modern English usage, and suggests that she WAS a security guard and it’s POSSIBLE therefore that she would not have been able to use that particular weapon.

However, she was not a security guard, and thus she was simply using a particular weapon that was perfectly legimate for her to use.

Therefore, the headline should have been, “Colorado Heroine Would Have Been Legally Prevented from Using Beretta if a Security Guard.”

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